The Union Government has accepted that there were discrepancies in the certification of organic cotton certification in Madhya Pradesh (MP) and necessary action has been taken against the responsible organisation.
The issue was raised by Digvijaya Singh, Member of the Upper House (Rajya Sabha) as he wrote a detailed letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and asked for necessary action to prevent the discrepancies regarding organic cotton and fraud in this regard.
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Now Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has replied to this letter and shared that an investigation was done in this regard in July and August 2024. Finding serious violations in the certification process, the certified body has been suspended for one year and the registration of a production group under the National Program of Organic Products (NPOP) has been cancelled. The action is being taken for a few other certification bodies.
The letter has serious allegations saying that the entire development has raised serious questions about the image of India. The traders purchased normal BT Cotton and getting fake certification they exported this cotton as organic cotton.
“The scam has taken place in MP but it may be spread across India. There are such farmer groups that have nothing to do with cotton production but they are taking advantage of Government schemes made for organic production,” Digvijaya Singh, the senior leader made the allegation.
It is worth mentioning here that under the Prime Minister Agriculture Vikas Yojna (PKVY), the Government offers cash incentives to promote organic agriculture. Madhya Pradesh is India’s biggest cluster for the production of organic cotton.
The Commerce Minister also said that the Indore police has been informed about the matter and has been urged to take proper action in this regard. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry will continue the required action in this case.
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